Eman Quotah's debut novel, Bride of the Sea, won the Arab American Book Award for fiction. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post, USA Today and many other publications. She lives outside Washington, DC, with her family.

Quotah's portrayal of a young girl grappling not only with herself, but with the true nature of the world - in and out of the murky light of human monstrosity - is painfully earnest, and one that feels both necessary and timely. She paints us a world that feels ripe for the taking, much like the flowers that make up Layla's perfumes, but also foreign and warped. This is a book that I will return to time and time again, particularly when the world feels vibrant and violent.

Eman Quotah's debut novel, Bride of the Sea, won the Arab American Book Award for fiction. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post, USA Today and many other publications. She lives outside Washington, DC, with her family.

Quotah's portrayal of a young girl grappling not only with herself, but with the true nature of the world - in and out of the murky light of human monstrosity - is painfully earnest, and one that feels both necessary and timely. She paints us a world that feels ripe for the taking, much like the flowers that make up Layla's perfumes, but also foreign and warped. This is a book that I will return to time and time again, particularly when the world feels vibrant and violent.

Eman Quotah's debut novel, Bride of the Sea, won the Arab American Book Award for fiction. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post, USA Today and many other publications. She lives outside Washington, DC, with her family.

Quotah's portrayal of a young girl grappling not only with herself, but with the true nature of the world - in and out of the murky light of human monstrosity - is painfully earnest, and one that feels both necessary and timely. She paints us a world that feels ripe for the taking, much like the flowers that make up Layla's perfumes, but also foreign and warped. This is a book that I will return to time and time again, particularly when the world feels vibrant and violent.